COMMENTS FROM CONTEST JUDGE MARIE KANE:

The American Academy of Poets defines an Ode as belonging "to the long and varied tradition of lyric poetry . . . . It can be generalized as a formal address of praise to an event, a person, or a thing not present." From John Keats to Mark Doty, from Emily Dickinson to Louise Glück, poets have honored flowers in their poetry. The third place poem in this age group, "Ode to a Crocus," is a charming tribute to the crocus that employs exact verbs, original metaphor, and inventive personification to honor this harbinger of spring.

The praise for the crocus opens the poem.:

Crocus-
your vibrant
green shoots
perforate
the densest dirt.

Note the exact and imaginative language of "vibrant," "perforate," and "densest dirt." The poet goes on to describe the proliferation and brightness of this flower that "scatters the countryside" with "ecstatic blossom," reminding the "passerby [sic] / of things to come."

The flower's impact on humanity continues with specific language in the second section. Here, the crocus is the "hope and prayer / of a poor man" with its "creamy-colored flesh" "spread[ing] / across his fields."

In the last three sections, the praise of the crocus becomes more lavish. The flower is "beauty royal" whose "petals / crystalized with dew" "retract at dusk" and "flourish again." In the fourth section, the crocus has increased its value as "Dearest," and the flower's mythology deepens its importance:

you were delivered
into this world
by Flora,
the goddess of flowers.
Krokos you were named
when she laid you
in the cradle of a valley
and a cardinal
sang your lullaby.

The flower's mythic birth is brought on by "Flora / the goddess of flowers" who named it "Krokos" or Krokos Kozanis, (Crocus Sativus Linneaus), which dates back to ancient Greece. In the poem, the flower, like an infant, is "laid / in the cradle of a valley" while a "cardinal" sings a "lullaby." The transformation of the crocus as a flower to worship is completed in the ending tercet: the "angelic" petals now "concoct a lilac goblet."

Diction is this writer's strong suit. He or she chooses inventive and exact verbs to showcase the flower, such as "perforate," "retract," "flourish," and "concoct." Effective adjectives modifying nouns appear throughout the poem - "vibrant green shoots," "densest dirt," ecstatic blossoms," "exquisite wings," angelic petals," and the very creative, "lilac goblet." They enable the reader to visualize and honor the flower. I enjoy the personification of the crocus; it has the power to "remind" the "passerby" [sic], and "concoct a lilac goblet," while its petals are "creamy-colored flesh." The poem alternately compares the crocus to a bird ("exquisite wings") and a child ("laid you / in the cradle of a valley").

The poem's creative description of the crocus using bright and original language certainly gives this lovely poem a prize.

Thank you for the privilege of reading your work!

Marie Kane
Final Judge, Sarah Mook Poetry Contest
engmrk@aol.com